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| Greenlake |
8 years ago
Monday, July 21, 2008
Sunday, July 20, 2008
a sad day for my audi . . .
so, there i was yesterday, driving back from a lovely walk around the lake with my charming little bug, and i come to a stop in a left-hand turn lane about a mile from my house and the audi, my dutiful little allroad, dies. ka-plooey.
it just so happens that i'm the first in line, mind you, so when the light turns green, i can't go anywhere, and my hazard lights aren't cooperating with me, and i'm trying to wave the people around from behind me, but all they do is honk at me.
meanwhile, in the backseat, my little bug is having a grand ol' time with our new little adventure . . . she's such a trooper.
any-who, so after many honkings, nasty looks and the turn signal going through it's cycle about 7 times, and calling just about everyone i can for help (no one was home or was in a position to help) a lovely couple comes to my rescue.
this kind, gracious gentlemen hops out of his car (instead of honking at me) and asks whats wrong and could he help, gets someone to help him push my car somewhere safe when the light turns green, and ends up having a tow rope in his truck, tows my car all the way home and him and his wife help push my car into my parking spot.
it was amazing. a very sad day for my audi, but a wonderful day for renewing my faith in humanity. it's just good to know that there are still wonderful compassionate people out there that are willing to take time out of their schedules to help someone stranded.
thank heavens for good samaritans.
Saturday, July 12, 2008
flowers
i took some flower pictures that i thought turned out well, so here they are. :)
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| pretty pretty flowers |
cutest picture ever
i love my bug to little tiny bits . . . it got pretty warm today and we played in the wading pool. it was the first time for her. even my little pug joined in the fun (even though i didn't get a chance to get a picture of him in the pool). i'm biased, i understand, but this picture still warms my heart and makes me happy all over.
i don't normally do this, but please bear with me a moment . . .
okay, me and anything political are like oil and water. i avoid politics and everything about them like the plague. nobody likes my opinion, so i keep it to myself, but, every once and awhile something crosses my path that strikes a cord to my own personal ethics that i feel needs to be shared with whoever is willing to listen.
i received an email that contained an unprinted letter to the editor about immigration and how over indulged many of us, not only those who have crossed over from other countries, but also those who have been here all our lives, have become.
here it is, read it if you will . . . it just meant something to me.
From: 'David LaBonte'
My wife, Rosemary, wrote a wonderful letter to the editor of the OC Register which, of course, was not printed. So, I decided to 'print' it myself by sending it out on the Internet. Pass it along if you feel so inclined Written in response to a series of letters to the editor in the Orange County Register:
Dear Editor:
So many letter writers have based their arguments on how this land is made up of immigrants. Ernie Lujan for one, suggests we should tear down the Statue of Liberty because the people now in question aren't being treated the same as those who passed through Ellis Island and other ports of entry.
Maybe we should turn to our history books and point out to people like Mr. Lujan why today's American is not willing to accept this new kind of immigrant any longer. Back in 1900 when there was a rush from all areas of Europe to come to the United States, people had to get off a ship and stand in a long line in New York and be documented . Some would even get down on their hands and knees and kiss the ground. They made a pledge to uphold the laws and support their new country in good and bad times. They made learning English a primary rule in their new American households and some even changed their names to blend in with their new home.
They had waved good bye to their birth place to give their children a new life and did everything in their power to help their children assimilate into one culture. Nothing was handed to them. No free lunches, no welfare, no labor laws to protect them. All they had were the skills and craftsmanship they had brought with them to trade for a future of prosperity.
Most of their children came of age when World War II broke out. My father fought along side men whose parents had come straight over from Germany, Italy, France and Japan. None of these 1st generation Americans ever gave any thought about what country their parents had come from. They were Americans fighting Hitler, Mussolini and the Emperor of Japan. They were defending the United States of America as one people.
When we liberated France, no one in those villages were looking for the French-American or the German American or the Irish American. The people of France saw only Americans. And we carried one flag that represented one country. Not one of those immigrant sons would have thought about picking up another country's flag and waving it to represent who they were. It would have been a disgrace to their parents who had sacrificed so much to be here. These immigrants truly knew what it meant to be an American. They stirred the melting pot into one red, white and blue bowl.
And here we are in 2008 with a new kind of immigrant who wants the same rights and privileges, only they want to achieve it by playing with a different set of rules, one that includes the entitlement card and a guarantee of being faithful to their mother country. I'm sorry, that's not what being an American is all about. I believe that the immigrants who landed on Ellis Island in the early 1900's deserve better than that for all the toil , hard work and sacrifice in raising future generations to create a land that has become a beacon for those legally searching for a better life. I think they would be appalled that they are being used as an example by those waving foreign country flags.
And for that suggestion about taking down the Statue of Liberty, it happens to mean a lot to the citizens who are voting on the immigration bill. I wouldn't start talking about dismantling the UNITED STATES just yet.
(Signed) Rosemary LaBonte
i received an email that contained an unprinted letter to the editor about immigration and how over indulged many of us, not only those who have crossed over from other countries, but also those who have been here all our lives, have become.
here it is, read it if you will . . . it just meant something to me.
From: 'David LaBonte'
My wife, Rosemary, wrote a wonderful letter to the editor of the OC Register which, of course, was not printed. So, I decided to 'print' it myself by sending it out on the Internet. Pass it along if you feel so inclined Written in response to a series of letters to the editor in the Orange County Register:
Dear Editor:
So many letter writers have based their arguments on how this land is made up of immigrants. Ernie Lujan for one, suggests we should tear down the Statue of Liberty because the people now in question aren't being treated the same as those who passed through Ellis Island and other ports of entry.
Maybe we should turn to our history books and point out to people like Mr. Lujan why today's American is not willing to accept this new kind of immigrant any longer. Back in 1900 when there was a rush from all areas of Europe to come to the United States, people had to get off a ship and stand in a long line in New York and be documented . Some would even get down on their hands and knees and kiss the ground. They made a pledge to uphold the laws and support their new country in good and bad times. They made learning English a primary rule in their new American households and some even changed their names to blend in with their new home.
They had waved good bye to their birth place to give their children a new life and did everything in their power to help their children assimilate into one culture. Nothing was handed to them. No free lunches, no welfare, no labor laws to protect them. All they had were the skills and craftsmanship they had brought with them to trade for a future of prosperity.
Most of their children came of age when World War II broke out. My father fought along side men whose parents had come straight over from Germany, Italy, France and Japan. None of these 1st generation Americans ever gave any thought about what country their parents had come from. They were Americans fighting Hitler, Mussolini and the Emperor of Japan. They were defending the United States of America as one people.
When we liberated France, no one in those villages were looking for the French-American or the German American or the Irish American. The people of France saw only Americans. And we carried one flag that represented one country. Not one of those immigrant sons would have thought about picking up another country's flag and waving it to represent who they were. It would have been a disgrace to their parents who had sacrificed so much to be here. These immigrants truly knew what it meant to be an American. They stirred the melting pot into one red, white and blue bowl.
And here we are in 2008 with a new kind of immigrant who wants the same rights and privileges, only they want to achieve it by playing with a different set of rules, one that includes the entitlement card and a guarantee of being faithful to their mother country. I'm sorry, that's not what being an American is all about. I believe that the immigrants who landed on Ellis Island in the early 1900's deserve better than that for all the toil , hard work and sacrifice in raising future generations to create a land that has become a beacon for those legally searching for a better life. I think they would be appalled that they are being used as an example by those waving foreign country flags.
And for that suggestion about taking down the Statue of Liberty, it happens to mean a lot to the citizens who are voting on the immigration bill. I wouldn't start talking about dismantling the UNITED STATES just yet.
(Signed) Rosemary LaBonte
choir reunion - june 28, 2008
i posted the "then" pictures, so here are the "now" ones:
enjoy! (as much as you possibly can . . . )
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| choir reunion |
enjoy! (as much as you possibly can . . . )
Wednesday, July 9, 2008
slide show pictures
these are pictures that i scanned in and made a slide show with for my choir reunion on june 28th.
enjoy!
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| choir |
enjoy!
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